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Tuesday, August 2, 2016

Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle has
been selected as one of the recipients of the 2016
Hispanic Woman of Distinction Award.

This year marks the 15th year that a charity
luncheon and awards program is held to recognize Latina women who have
contributed to their South Florida communities and represent a cross-section of
creative disciplines that are changing the face of American culture. The annual
event is presented by Latina Style Magazine, the nation’s leading Latina
business publication, and Bank of America as well as a large number of
corporate and media partners in South Florida. The charity selected this year
to represent the event is the Light of the World Clinic, a free healthcare
facility for the poor founded by the late Dr. Erwin M. Vasquez, a Venezuelan
cardiologist.

The annual event recognizes distinguished women of Hispanic
ethnicity who have made a significant contribution to the community while
maintaining their culture and traditions. Nominations are submitted by former
winners of the award and by local community leaders who submit names of Latinas
who are eligible for the honor from Broward, Dade and Palm Beach counties.

“It is an honor to be a recipient of the 2016
Hispanic Woman of Distinction Award,” commented State Attorney Katherine
Fernandez Rundle. “With Miami-Dade’s growing reputation as America’s Gateway to
Latin America, it is important to recognize how Latina women are providing
broad depth and direction to our multi-national community. The improvements
each of these women have made to our South Florida community through their
achievements adds another layer to our deep and rich cultural mix.”

State Attorney Fernandez
Rundle will be presented with the Hispanic
Woman of Distinction Award during a “Latin flavored” luncheon and awards
ceremony on Friday, August 12, 2016, at the Signature Grand in Davie.

Tuesday, May 17, 2016

As a result of a joint investigation by the Miami-Dade State
Attorney’s Office and the Miami-Dade County Office of the Inspector General
(OIG), two employees with Miami-Dade County’s Community Action Agency (CAA), an
agency within the County’s Community Action and Human Services Department
(CAHSD), were charged with using their positions to fraudulently obtain funds
intended to assist low-income individuals with paying their energy bills.

“Every theft by a governmental employee is a betrayal of the
public trust.It is particularly
disappointing when workers charged with helping the poor steal some of that
money for themselves,” noted State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle. “With
the filing of criminal charges, I’m certain that these individuals now
understand that they have committed serious offenses just to put a few extra
dollars into their pockets.”

Miami-Dade County Inspector General Mary Cagle expressed her
gratitude to those who come forward with information: “The OIG truly
appreciates concerned citizens and well-intentioned County employees alerting
us to fraudulent activities taking place in our County programs.The criminal acts committed by these County
employees deprive those who truly need the assistance of this worthwhile
program.”

A criminal investigation was initiated after the OIG
received an anonymous complaint indicating that CAA employees Iraida Macias and
Earlene Finney were circumventing the application process of the Low Income
Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) to personally obtain monies originally
intended to assist low-income individuals with paying their energy bills.LIHEAP is a federally-funded program administered
locally by Miami-Dade County.Macias and
Finney, as LIHEAP eligibility interviewers whose job it was to determine if
applicants met the income level limitations necessary to receive these
financial benefits, were able to circumvent the oversight safeguards to receive
money to which they were not eligible.

Between June 10, 2010 and September 4, 2012, Iraida Macias’
FPL account was credited with approximately $4,100.78 in LIHEAP funding.
Records indicate that between 2010 and 2014, Earlene J. Finney, a supervisor
who approves LIHEAP funding applications, received approximately $6,211.70 from
the LIHEAP program.

The SAO and OIG joint investigation was also assisted by the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services OIG, who administer LIHEAP at the
Federal level.

Iraida E. Macias has been charged with:

1 count of Official Misconduct, a 3rd Degree Felony

1 count of Organized Scheme to Defraud, a 3rd Degree Felony

8 counts of Grand Theft, a 3rd Degree Felony

Earlene J. Finney has been charged with:

1 count of Official Misconduct, a 3rd Degree Felony

1 count of Criminal Use of Personal Identification
Information, a 3rd Degree Felony

Friday, March 18, 2016

Antonio Giansante Garcia, a 39
year old computer professional, pled guilty today to providing accessibility of
nude and sexually explicit photos to his ex-girlfriend’s employer, supervisors
and fellow workers. The goal of such actions was to embarrass the victim before
her professional associates.

In a search warrant filed in
February 2015, the victim had indicated that she had left Giansante in 2012 “…due to his jealousy and possessiveness
toward her”, stating that the relationship was “unhealthy”. During their
long-term relationship, Giansante had taken a number of unconsented nude
photographs and explicit videos. Coworkers, their husbands, and supervisors
were all made aware of this material via ‘friend’ requests from fraudulent
Facebook accounts set up by I.T. professional Giansante. The victim was a minor
at the time the photos and video were taken which allowed a criminal
prosecution to proceed. The status of Florida law in 2015 would not have
allowed criminal prosecution in that year had these same actions occurred and
the victim been an adult.

“Revenge Porn is a tool for a
spurned former partner, spouse or lover to gain power and control over
someone,” commented State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle. “It is a means
of breaking the will and destroying the reputation and self-image of someone
the criminal claims to have loved. Mr. Giansante’s plan for dominance was
spoiled by this victim’s courage in coming forward to prosecute this crime.”

State Attorney Katherine
Fernandez Rundle and a coalition of victim advocates were able to convince the
Florida Legislature last year to enact legislation which now makes “revenge
porn” a crime.

In a plea approved by the victim,
Giansante will serve 30 days in the county jail and serve 5 years of reporting
probation after pleading guilty 2 counts of Video Voyeurism, a third degree
felony. Additionally, the defendant must inform his probation officer of any
and all email and social media accounts to be used by him during the term of
his probation, whether they are used for business or personal reasons and he
read an apology letter written to the victim during his plea colloquy.
Giansante was also ordered to donate $2,500 fines to the Cyber Civil Rights
Initiative and Project Phoenix of Camillus House, a new facility intended to
assist victims of human trafficking.

State Attorney Fernandez Rundle
should be available for media interviews later this afternoon. To schedule a
sound byte, please call 305-547-0535.

Thursday, March 17, 2016

“Today in court, it was apparent that former police
detective Karel Rosario had forgotten that to uphold the law, one must always
obey the law. He admitted to dealing in stolen property.His actions transformed him from a respected
officer to nothing more than a common criminal. Hopefully, his upcoming time in
prison will help him see the error of his actions.”

Friday, March 4, 2016

As a result of a joint investigation by the Miami-Dade State
Attorney’s Office and the Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Security
and Internal Affairs Bureau, Christy Laster, a twelve (12) year Department of
Corrections employee, has been arrested due to accumulated evidence related to
the theft and extortion of more than $20,000 from Boot Camp Cadets.

Christy Laster has been charged with:

6 countsBribery2ndDegree Felony

6 countsExtortion2nd Degree Felony

16 countsGrand Theft3rd Degree Felony

3 countsPetit Theft1stDegree Misdemeanor

The 35 year old Boot Camp case manager supervised cadets in
the second phase of the program.Initially, Boot Camp Cadets were held in-custody at the Turner Guilford
Knight Correctional Center for a period of four (4) months to complete a
militarily regimented program plan.During the Phase 2 portion of the program, cadets were released into the
community and were required to be employed.During this 60 day “Work Release Program”, cadets were not permitted to
have cash in their possession and were required to pay the cost of programmatic
supervision, usually a $10.00 per day fee.

The investigation indicated that Officer Laster would induce
the cadets to give her their wages either under the guise of collecting the
cost of supervision or threatening to have them violated out of the program and
placed into custody.The financial investigation
verified the information supplied by the program cadets about the movement of
cash to Christy Laster.Further
investigation revealed that Officer Christy Laster appeared to be a regular
customer at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino and experienced extensive gambling
losses surpassing $38,000.

“As a case manager,
Officer Laster appears to have taught a hypocritical lesson to all of these
cadets who were trying to go straight,” noted State Attorney Katherine
Fernandez Rundle. “Now, it seems to be her time to learn the price that
criminality exacts.”

Thursday, December 17, 2015

As a result of a joint
investigation by the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, the Miami-Dade Police
Department, undercover investigators from the Animal Recovery Mission (ARM)
group and officers from the Florida Wildlife Commission, 45 year old Angel
Ricardo Vargas and 41 year old Mayelin Rodriguez were arrested and charged with
felonies relating to operation of an illegal slaughterhouse at their residence
at 19400 SW 136th Street, Miami-Dade County.

During an undercover investigation commencing on May 1, 2015
and ending today, undercover operatives visited the site on four (4) different
occasions, often filming the acts of animal cruelty which entailed the repeated
stabbing, hooking, dragging and boiling alive of animals intended to be sold to
the purchasers who visited the residence.These animal slaughter activities were occurring in a residential area
of Miami-Dade County and were not permitted to occur by existing zoning and
health laws.

Angel Ricardo Vargas has immediately been charged with:

4 countsCruelty to Animals3rdDegree Felony

1 countConspiracy to Commit Cruelty to Animals3rdDegree Felony

Mayelin Rodriguez has immediately been charged with:

1 countCruelty to Animals3rdDegree Felony

1 countConspiracy to Commit Cruelty to Animals3rdDegree Felony

The on-site investigation has led to a variety of additional
findings which may include the directing of potentially unhealthy meat into the
food chain.The discovery of industrial
ovens at the site (photos attached in following email messages) and the filthy
conditions have raised serious concerns which will need further
investigation.

“Anyone involved in the food industry knows that there are
easily performed, painless ways to slaughter livestock for food. At these
illegal slaughterhouses, it seem to be too much trouble to render the animals
senseless”, commented State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle.“Instead of following Florida’s Laws, Angel
Ricardo Vargas, and his wife, Mayelin Rodriguez turned a part of their home
into an animal house of horrors.I
applaud the partnership which allows my prosecutors, the Miami-Dade Police
Department and the Animal Recovery Mission to effectively shut down such
ghastly operations.Now we need to know
if the meat from this site has been entering our local food chain.That state and federal investigation is now
ongoing.”

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Suspended Miami Dade
Police Department Detective Karel Rosario pled guilty today before Judge Teresa
Pooler to the charge ofDealing in
Stolen Property.This charge arose from Rosario’s actions during the execution of a May
20, 2015 Federal search warrant at the residence of Mrs. Yulia Martinez which
resulted in her being taken into custody.It was during this incident that Detective Rosario took some very
distinctive and expensive jewelry from the Martinez residence.

On May 27, 2015, Rosario
was captured on video at the Seybold Jewelry Building meeting with a jeweler in
an effort to sell a Cartier watch and Cartier style “Nail” bracelet. The
uniqueness of the jewelry played a key role in Detective Rosario’s subsequent
investigation by the Miami Dade State Attorney’s Office and the Miami-Dade
Police Department and Rosario’s later arrest. Today’s plea to the court shows
the effectiveness of the investigation and the strength of the criminal case.

“Every police department
depends on the integrity and professionalism of its officers,” said State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle. “Detective
Rosario sold out his integrity the minute he picked up that jewelry.He has let down the good people of Miami-Dade
County and every professional police officer who risks death each day to uphold
our laws.”